Trou Moet Blycken is a historical chamber of rhetoric

Chamber of rhetoric

Chambers of rhetoric were dramatic societies in the Low Countries. Their members are called Rederijkers , from the french word 'rhétoricien', and during the 15th and 16th centuries were mainly interested in dramas and lyrics...

 over 500 years old and currently a gentlemen's club on the Grote Houtstraat in Haarlem

Haarlem

Haarlem is a municipality and a city in the Netherlands. It is the capital of the province of North Holland, the northern half of Holland, which at one time was the most powerful of the seven provinces of the Dutch Republic...

, Netherlands

Netherlands

The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...

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History

Though the society probably goes back earlier in time, the earliest document from the archives shows that it definitely was established by 1503, so this has been historically used as the year of birth, most recently for the 500 year anniversary in 2003. This was not the only chamber of rhetoric in Haarlem; The Haarlem painters Job Adriaenszoon Berckheyde

Job Adriaenszoon Berckheyde

Job Adriaenszoon Berckheyde was a Dutch artist of the 17th century, active in Haarlem, Amsterdam, and The Hague.-Biography:...

 and Salomon de Bray

Salomon de Bray

Salomon de Bray was a Dutch Golden Age architect and painter.-Biography:De Bray was born inAmsterdam, but established himself in Haarlem before 1617, where he is registered as being a member of the schutterij that year in the St. Adrian's cloveniers...

were members of the chamber called 'De Wijngaardranken'.

The front of the building is decorated with pelicans, symbolizing the "Blazoen" of the chamber itself, a pelican feeding its young.